


Moonshine Kisses

by HanzobarMoustache



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Fluff and Angst, Lol it's time for feels now, Lots of Angst, M/M, Remember the happy in the previous part?, Werewolves, who am I kidding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-03
Updated: 2018-05-29
Packaged: 2019-05-15 17:37:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14794934
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HanzobarMoustache/pseuds/HanzobarMoustache
Summary: In the depths of a forest on a hill, there rests a wolf and a vagabond. The wolf carries many secrets and his pelt carries both his scars and stories. Though he may not openly display his past like the wolf, the man has his own plethora of tales. Such is the way of legends, and between the both of them, they carry far too many tales to be confined to flesh and bone.





	Moonshine Kisses

**Author's Note:**

> Read the first one, it's better I swear. It has a summary that makes sense.  
> 

The bell above the entrance rang, alerting her of a customer, but she didn't need to look away from the poultice she was creating to know who it was, his thick accent greeting her seconds before the stench of his cigarillos did, "Howdy, Miss Amari."

Chuckling gently to mask the disappointment - she had been expecting a taller, brawnier, older charismatic fellow - she turned from her worktable to make her way to the counter, settling atop the stool behind the register with a smile. "How many times must I tell you, Jesse? Please call me Ana."

"Pardon me, Ana," Jesse smiled softly, leaning forward on the counter, sleeve rolled up past the elbow, the other pinned up at his shoulder where his prosthesis was missing. Her eyes dropped to the long scar raised along the length of his forearm, still prominently discolored.

She hummed, reaching forward to prod at the scar, carefully watching Jesse for any signs of discomfort. Pleased with her examination, she took her hands back to tidy up a few loose herbs on the counter, speaking as she worked, "Your arm has healed quite nicely. Keeping it clean, I assume?"

"Yes, ma'am. It's been just fine 'cept for some minor aching in the morning. No puss, no fuss."

Ana rolled her eyes at the crude statement, "Very well. I trust you to tell me immediately if something happens."

"I've been around the block before. I know the drill. Trust me, it's a walk in the park compared to this thing," he wriggled the stub of his left arm.

"Odd to see you without it. I assume it is in for repairs?"

"Yep. Torb said it needs _intensive_ repairs." Jesse scratched at his beard, recalling what the blacksmith mentioned about the prosthesis. "Something about how poorly I've treated it for the last, oh, coupla years."

Ana nodded sagely, "Yes, that would do it. Well, then, what brings you here if not for my herbal wisdom?"

"Force o' habit... and, well, as for why I'm here... there's, uh-"

Ana knew that tone well, dealt with it enough in her years to understand the tentative, almost shy nature of those unaccustomed to a topic that unnerved them, who chose to treat it with utmost - at times unnecessary - caution to the point of stagnation. It would not do, having  _Jesse_ of all people hold that tone. The man spoke of all natures of things; whatever was on his mind was serious.

She pushed herself off the stool, grabbing her walking stick and starting off to the living quarters behind the storefront. "Would you like some tea?"

Jesse's shoulders drooped, and he nodded. "Yeah, I think that'd help."

"Change the sign to 'closed,' then. I'll get some brewed in just a moment."

 

Jesse sighed, watching the leaves in his teacup swirl about in the water, dancing around each other like sakura blossoms in the wind.

Ana sipped at her own cup silently, patiently waiting for Jesse to speak. She leaned forward to spoon some sugar into the man's cup, speaking only once the granules dissolved, "Take your time, habibi." She certainly was not prepared for what the man was about to blurt.

"Billy's dying."

Ana blinked, put down her tea, and turned in her chair to properly face Jesse. She placed a hand on his knee, and the words began to pour out.

"He's the oldest wolf Hanzo has running with him. He's not doing too hot, not since winter let up anyway, always taking a lil' too long getting up and down, and his old bones creak something awful. It's pitiful, but I just know he ain't gonna last much longer. I'm just not really sure what to do.

"Back home, it's common to just take old dogs out someplace quiet and shoot 'em, get it over with before they suffer too awful bad. But Billy's not just some mangy mutt picked up on the side of the road. He's Hanzo's _family_. Hell, the old fart's grown on me, too.

"It ain't like we can put him in hospice or, hell I don't know, retire him to live out the rest of his days as a lapdog. He's a wild animal... I guess I thought you might be able to help. Might be able to give advice, at least."

Ana was quiet a moment, digesting the information Jesse confided in her. She spoke gently, "Unfortunately, I am an herbalist, not a veterinarian. However, if it would put you at ease, I can come visit and have a look at him? If I can do nothing for him, I may at least be able to brew something for the pain."

"Would you be able to...?" Jesse didn't finish his statement.

"If it came to it, yes. So long as Hanzo consented, I could lay the old dog to rest."

Jesse hauled Ana up into a hug faster than she could blink, squeezing tight enough to pop her back. He murmured into hair, "You're a God-damned angel, Ana."

"I do believe those are demons, Jesse," Ana laughed, patting Jesse's back until he released her. She smiled widely, stretching her back, "Let me collect some things, and I'll stop by tomorrow."

"Hell, bring 'Reeha, too. Let's make a night of it. It's been awhile since I've had a proper bonfire, and the weather's perfect for it."

"I don't know if-."

"I've got my own little plot of land up there now, log cabin and everything. Long as I don't burn the forest down, Hanzo won't say a word."

"Jesse, I'm unsure if-."

"C'mon, you've not even seen the place yet. I cleaned it up real nice."

"If you are sure, then I suppose-."

"I'll invite Reinhardt." Jesse winked.

Ana scoffed, pushing at Jesse's chest, "Oh, please. There's no need to _bribe_ me." She huffed and crossed her arms. "If you want a bonfire, you'll have to wait until the weekend. I need time to make something sweet."

"Oh, Ana, I'm sure Reinhardt thinks you're sweet enough."

Ana sneered, "I meant something to appease your sweet-tooth of a lover. I suppose I shall spread the word to Reinhardt and Torb, then?"

"Works for me. Saturday it is! I better go tell 'Reeha the good news."

"She should be down at the beach. She's been spending quite a while down there recently."

"I'll check on her, don't you worry none. She won't be getting into trouble on my watch."

"Thank you, Jesse."

 

* * *

 

The beach wasn't a short trip from the village, not for the average man. The rolling hills leading down to the water's edge were enough to take the breath from even the most athletic of men, and often a visit to the lovely waves and warm sand was reserved for a lazy summer day where the entire day could be reserved for the sole purpose of enjoying the atmosphere.

Fareeha Amari jogged to the beach every morning to swim. She claimed that swimming was a better workout than even working in Torb's forge, but Jesse wasn't about to believe that for a moment. She was always too _giggly_ when she came back home. It was about time to figure out what the girl was doing so far from home; he only wanted to make sure she was safe.

Or to embarrass the hell out of her if she had found herself a sweetheart.

Jesse stepped onto the sand from the main path, youngest Amari nowhere in sight. Aside from a footstep in the sand, he could have been confident saying no one had been on the beach that day aside from himself. He shook his head, toeing off his shoes and rolling his jeans up to his knees. There was no dry place on the beach that had any semblance of privacy, but Hanzo had shown him a few secluded caves the few times they had explored the beach together. One had to be willing to get their feet wet to get there, but the atmosphere was like nothing else.

In those caves, it was as if nothing else existed, no earthly qualms or problems could reach them, where the air was cool and the only sounds were that of the other's breath and the gentle _plip-plop_ of water droplets falling from the stalactite, where he could get lost in Hanzo's eyes and the feel of his lips, where the sound echoed just right and Hanzo's giggles sounded absolutely _divine_.

He splashed some cold seawater into his face to will his blush down before poking around looking for Fareeha.

He didn't find her in the few caves closest to the path, didn't find the slightest hint of her even being around aside from that lone footstep. He pushed his jeans as high as they would go and started wading out to the most secluded system Hanzo knew of. Jesse wasn't allowed to go out there normally because Hanzo said he had a friend that lived out there, but Jesse felt like a missing person was reason enough to poke around just a bit more.

He laughed aloud once he made his way to the small, isolated stretch of beach alongside the cave. Folded neatly above the line in the sand carved by high tide, Fareeha's outer clothes rested on a clean rock.

This cave had no entrance to be seen above the water's surface; the only way in was found by swimming ten feet below the waves and crawling through. Jesse recalled Hanzo saying the first time through had been "harrowing" due to the absolute lack of light and sound, as if one was traveling through the infinite, unflinching cosmos.

Jesse wasn't sure if that was an apt description, but he'd never been one for terribly frilly language anyway. He stripped himself, threw his clothes toward Fareeha's, and dove into the water.

It was _freezing_. He'd been wading through it, but once it encompassed his entire being, the chill pierced through his skin and settled deep in his bones, slowing him as he swam through the water with all the grace of a drowning turkey. He was raised in a desert, he wasn't built for water dammit!

Just when his lungs were about to burst, he found the entrance to the cave and pushed himself through urgently, breaking the surface of the water with a gasp and cough. He frantically caught his breath as his eyes adjusted to the darkness until he could see two vague figures on the other side of the cave pressed close to each other.

Upon hearing smacking and giggling noise, he shouted, hoping to save all of them some embarrassment, "You've got a visitor!"

Fareeha jolted, breaking off from the other woman, floundering uselessly as the unidentified woman - _mermaid_ \- rolled over her to assume a defensive position, tail wrapped around Fareeha, arms propping her up, jaw extended and sharp teeth exposed as she hissed, gills flaring.

"God dammit, Jesse!" Fareeha shouted, wriggling free of the mermaid's tail. "What are you doing here?"

The mermaid tilted her head, curious. She relaxed immediately with Fareeha's words, coaxing her to sit back down with the wides puppy-dog eyes Jesse'd ever seen. She wrapped her arms around Fareeha's waist, resting her chin on her shoulder, quietly asking, "You know this man **,** _chand ka tukda_?"

"Unfortunately," Fareeha groaned, hiding her face in her hands.

Jesse pushed himself up out of the water, padding over to the two and sitting before them. He offered the mermaid a grin and his hand, "Jesse McCree, nice to meet you, Miss...?"

"Satya Vaswani," she said simply, staring at Jesse's hand as if it were a stinking, dead fish before reluctantly placing her hand in his to shake. She recoiled when he pressed his lips to her knuckles.

"Stop trying to charm my girlfriend!" Fareeha growled, kicking out at Jesse.

"Trust me, it isn't working," Satya deadpanned, pressing her nose into Fareeha's shoulder, wiping the back of her hand off on Fareeha's shorts, "He's so _furry_."

"You should see his boyfriend," Fareeha grumbled.

"At least Hanzo takes care of himself."

"Girls, I'm sitting right here!"

"Well maybe it'll teach you to not be a peeping Tom!" Fareeha shot back, crossing her arms over her chest much to Satya's amusement. "What are you doing here anyway?"

Jesse gasped, hand flying to his chest, aghast, "I wasn't peeping! Your ma was concerned about you going off all the time, and I was the good Samaritan who - out of the kindness of my heart - went out of my way to locate and ensure the safety of her one beloved daughter! Now I get to tell her the reason you're sneaking off is because you've been seeing someone behind her back."

"Jesse James McCree, you wouldn't _dare_!" Fareeha's accusation prompted Jesse's brow to jump and a shit-eating grin pull at his lips.

"Oh, but dare I shall!"

"Satya, let me go. I need to kill him," Fareeha whined.

The mermaid scoffed, "You are not getting blood in my cave."

"Why thank you, Miss Vaswani!"

Satya stared at Jesse, lips curling back in a smile that mimicked Hanzo's when he was being devious, "Kill him outside."

Jesse bristled under the girls' predatory gazes, spluttering, "Now hold on just a minute!"

 

"So, I take it you really like this girl?" Jesse teased as he and Fareeha began the long walk back to the village.

"I'm never living this down, am I?"

"Hell no."

Fareeha shook her head, kicking a pebble as she walked, keeping her eyes glued to the ground instead of risking any eye-contact with Jesse. "Yeah, I do. She just... There's a connection there, and we really understand each other. I know we're from two different worlds, but... I don't know. She's so smart and funny and so _so_..."

"Beautiful?" The mermaid with her long, dark hair and warm brown skin cut an impressive figure. She knew how to doll herself up with all sorts of golden baubles without appearing tacky, and her cyan scales were absolutely gorgeous against the sand where she waved Fareeha off before disappearing back into the waves with an angelic grace. (Made sense why she was Hanzo's friend. Beautiful, audacious people stuck together apparently.)

"Breathtaking!" Fareeha corrected, a lovely dopey look on her face as she spoke, "I can listen to her talk for _hours_ about the things she builds, and she is beyond ecstatic when I bring her anything to build with. I brought her wood reed a few weeks ago, and we spent all day weaving baskets, and I loved every moment of it!"

"You have it bad."

"I do," Fareeha agreed dreamily, shrugging unapologetically.

"Bet your mom would be _real_ happy to hear all about her."

"No! You can't tell her! She'll kill me if she finds out from you. I have to tell her myself or she'll hate me forever."

"She will not h-."

"Jesse, you do not know my mother. _I_ have to tell her."

"Fine, fine. I won't tell her."

"Thank y-."

"On _one_ condition."

"Miraculously, The loathing I felt for you has returned."

"Don't be like that! All you need to do is bring Satya to the bonfire this weekend. Introduce your mom to your girlfriend, and I'll act like I didn't know a thing."

"You are _evil_."

"You want me to tell Ana? I'll tell her, cross my heart."

"Fine! I'll bring Satya to your bonfire! She probably wants to see Hanzo anyway and ask him why he's dating _you_."

"Fareeha!"

 

* * *

 

"Jesse?" Hanzo asked, his eyes glued to the stamped-down grass where Billy lay, fitfully kicking out in his sleep and smacking Belle in the face with his tail. A sharp look convinced her not to pounce upon him, and she hobbled over to wrestle with the twins instead.

"Yeah, sweetpea?" Jesse looked up from the ground where he'd been reading, marking his page with a piece of grass, smiling gently at the way Hanzo's cheeks still reddened with the pet name.

"You mentioned once that you are cursed." He murmured, watching the siblings sandwich Belle between themselves and playfully nip at her.

Jesse coughed, setting his book aside and crossing his arms, preparing himself for the inevitable conversation that would follow. "That I did. What about it?"

"Would you mind telling me about it? You have no obligation to do so, I was just..."

"Curiosity hits us all, no need to apologize." Jesse pushed himself to his feet with a groan, walking the short distance between himself and Hanzo to plop down next to his friend where he sat upon a rock, the rabbit he had been skinning long forgotten if that distant look in his eyes was anything to go by.

"It may be raw, still. I do not know when you were-."

"Guess I could spin you that tale," Jesse groaned exaggeratedly, stretching his arms to prepare himself for a _long_ story full of gestures. It pulled Hanzo from his funk and brought a laugh to his lips, at least. "Oh, boy, but where to start? Well, s'pose it might be apt to explain what the curse is first. The demon what done cursed me called it ' _deadeye_ ,' said it was both a gift and a burden. Thing was horribly full of itself, I tell you what."

"That would be the demon that imprinted on you?"

"Nah, now hold up, don't get all riled up now, hon. Those devils're both long dead. Anyway, uh, to put it bluntly, I see dead people."

"Dead people?" Hanzo echoed, throwing the rabbit carcass in the general direction of the wolves, far too entranced with Jesse's theatrics to bother with his chore.

"Heh, yeah, thanks to this-" Jesse tapped his right eye, the one that was just a slightly darker shade of brown to the untrained eye - "I can see ghosts and the like. Can tell if someone ain't really alive, too. They look kinda... kinda shimmery, like the air over hot asphalt in the middle of summer. And, well, that's more an issue half the time, let me tell you."

"The dead upset you?"

"Well, depends. Sometimes they're loud sons of guns, that's for sure. Not many up here, all things considered. Pretty quiet."

"Many... so there are some spirits lingering here?"

"Yeah, but none with a -how do I put this?- real _defined_ presence, none that are gonna be around for an extended period of time. Those bounty-hunters you killed, one of 'em keeps wailing and making a ruckus. I reckon it's that one you used as a pincushion, but he'll leave soon enough. Ones like him usually don't stick around too long, just long enough to get over their deaths and move on."

"Ah, then there are many types of spirits."

"Yup. Stories are rooted in fact sometimes, and ones about ghosts are no different. Ghosts and poltergeists are different devils, but... I guess I could say that they're kinda like wolves and dogs. Related in their ways, but different enough." Jesse toyed with his lighter, idly searching his pockets for the cigarillos he had run out of.

Hanzo bent down, pulling one of the cigars he'd purchased in town for Jesse out of his bag, handing it over. "There is more to it, isn't there?"

Jesse sighed, nodding, pinching the end of the cigar as he lit it, watched it burn for a moment before taking a drag and speaking, "I've also got a damn fine aim, if I do say so myself, but that can't hold a candle to what this eye of mine can do. Hand me a six-shooter, and throw a few men in front of me. All of them will be dead before they can draw. Comes at a price, of course, but sometimes there's no choice."

"What is the cost?"

Jesse blew out the smoke, letting it dissipate before speaking, "Their souls. I can hit ten men with six bullets, but their souls're taken by the thing that cursed me if I have to shoot without ammo. Damn thing took my natural talent and twisted it for its own gain. Shootin' without bullets can be nice, but... takes a toll on a man."

"Ah." Hanzo was silent, unsure if Jesse would continue. When it was clear the man wouldn't, he took a breath and bumped his shoulder against the other man's. "Seems like a bargain."

Jesse laughed, smiling as he shook his head, "Aw, darlin'. You've got an awful high opinion of me if that's what you're thinkin'."

"You will not prove me wrong."

Jesse's grin met his eyes, and his snicker died as he took another drag from the cigar before offering it to Hanzo. While Hanzo pressed the cigar to his lips, Jesse continued, "Guess I oughta let you know how it all happened, then. Not a whole lotta people come out of the crosshairs of two demons alive. I'm certainly not unscathed, but I'm still breathing.

"I'll start with Deadlock. Now, it was really more of a gang than a coven, but... we had plenty of desert-witches and small-town magic users, but most of us were just plain old human. Everyone learned a lil' bit of magic eventually, little incantations but nothing like big old fireballs thrown from our hands, more like charms and stuff of that sort. I still make a charm on occasion for luck and protection." Jesse paused a moment, tapping the metal decoration on his hat before continuing, "This thing's enchanted, actually. Gabi didn't believe a word of it, but-."

"Gabi?"

"Ah, yeah, my old boss. I think I mighta mentioned him once, actually."

"Oh, right, you called him 'a real mean old fucker' if I can recall."

"Yup, that's the one. Gabriel Reyes. You'd think someone that turned into a bat on occasion would put a little more faith in magic, but what the hell do I know. Anyway, back to Deadlock, I wasn't really as old as some of the others, shitty life led to shitty choices you know, but I was useful enough. Sharp aim, quick wit, pretty hand with protection spells, handsome as I'll get out-."

"I believe the story is muddling behind your ego, Jess," Hanzo chuckled, leaning into his side.

"Heh, alright, alright. I was good enough to get myself a name in the gang in any case, had myself a wanted poster before long, too. 'Course, it didn't have nearly the number of zeros it does now..."

"Modest."

"Always, sunshine," Jesse winked. "Anyway, someone eventually had the bright idea to summon a demon to get some more power, get the gang some more recognition, ask the thing to lend some power for... something. Hell, I don't remember anymore. That damn thing fed on memories, and all the time around it is just _fuzzy._ I didn't participate in the summoning, the thing killed just about anyone that did before coming on into the gang and doin' as it pleased after setting itself up as kingpin. Might've stuck around a year, maybe three? That was the worst of Deadlock, when that thing was in charge, greedy and hungry as hell. That's when Deadlock switched from robberies, muggings to kidnapping, ransoming, anything and everything that would help fill that sunnova bitch's stomach and pockets.

"People came and went fast through the gang then. Some of 'em died on jobs, but most of 'em lost enough memories to the demon that they were just gone. None of them were real nice folk, but they were _nothing_ after the demon sucked them dry, left them husks of people, bleary-eyed and missing everything but a pulse. Empty.

"I had a friend, someone I might've called my first love if that demon hadn't come through when it did. Seein' them sitting there, idly spinning a revolver out of pure muscle memory and not recognizing me when I walked up, not knowing who I was or even who they were, not reacting to their own goddamn name-" Jesse took a breath, steadying the rapit beating of his heart and the anger that still flared in his chest from that day. He hooked a hand through his hair, staring at his feet through teary eyes. "It felt like they'd been erased, like everything we'd ever been through meant nothing, didn't happen, wasn't real even though I knew damn well it was."

Hanzo took McCree's knee in hand, squeezing gently to ground him again in the present. "What was their name?"

McCree smiled ruefully, shaking his head and snuffing out the cigar on his metallic wrist, "Heh, that's the fucking kicker, that. The demon took that, too. I don't know what it was. Might've started with a K, but I don't know."

"I would never ask you to continue this tale if it upsets you so. It is still raw, but if you don't mind my asking, how were you spared such a fate?"

"It'll always sting, but it's nice to be able to share if you'll believe that." Jesse took off his hat, playing with the brim as he continued, "The demon only took certain things. Preferred nice things, good, wholesome memories.

"I've got a memory of my mother. I'm not... I... she was..."

Hanzo extended his hand, carefully twining his fingers around Jesse's, stroking the back of his hand with his thumb.

"We were eating dinner, tacos, outside on the porch where we could look out over the horizon and watch the sun descend past it. I wasn't too old. Old enough to feed myself but not quite old enough to be neat about it yet. I dropped a taco right into my lap, damn thing spun and landed with all the fixin's face-down and got salsa all over me. Mama laughed so hard she smacked her face with hers and got salsa all over herself, too. I remember how hard my stomach hurt from laughing, where the salsa smeared over her lip and made it look like she had a mustache, how the song the radio was playing - a song I can still sing from memory - drifted out the window... but..." Jesse took a breath." Hanzo, I don't remember what her eyes look like. That demon went through every memory I ever had of her and wiped her beautiful eyes away.

"It was real picky, liked to see what it could take and make outta people when it took things. One of our best fighters, real big guy, died from a fight he should've won because the demon swiped some of the combat training he'd gotten with his dad. Best damn cook there was stated to burn everything because it took her abuela's teachings away. Worst part was, we couldn't tell if it took something from us, could always tell when it happened to someone else though. We only knew if it or someone else told us, but the damn thing loved to rub it in, liked to make us know how miserable it was making us.

"It only took good memories. It said something once about bad memories tasting like ash and cyanide.

"It's the demon that imprinted on me, if that wasn't clear. It was pickier about its favorites, and it took a real shine to me for whatever reason, carefully removed little bits and pieces and shaped me up how it wanted. It recognized a lotta people didn't really like me, and since it never touched sour memories, lots of people got stuck on hate and little else. I can't name all the poor bastards that tried to slit my throat in the middle of the night when the demon fished all the good out of them. I don't know why it didn't... why it didn't treat me like the others. It taught me things, put memories in my head that weren't mine, forced me to know what it feels like to put your mouth on a gushing artery and drink, what it feels like wh-" Jesse cut himself off, glancing to his companion before silencing. The words he had been about to say - _when someone's tearing through your guts and chewing on your liver_ \- tasted as bitter as the memory.

"When?" Hanzo pressed, disgustingly intrigued by the horrors Jesse described.

"I'd best not continue with that. If it's all the same to you."

"I... I am here for you, do not forget that," Hanzo murmured in lieu of an apology.

"I know, thank you. Now, this whole operation of the demon callin' the shots fell apart, nowhere soon enough mind you. It got reckless, started taking things people were gonna miss. People with money and power and the ability to do something about it. And that's where... no, wait, I was... I was cursed before that. Shit, I mixed the two up somehow. I'm sorry, I told you it's all fuzzy, guess it's jumbled too."

"You do not need to tell it as it happened, Jesse. If it is easier, tell it as you remember. Or do not tell it at all. It has stressed you enough for one day if you would prefer to leave it for now."

"No, I'm gonna tell you. I've just gotta get it straight, that's all. I'll get through this then talk about the other demon. If there's still time in the day."

Quietly, Hanzo clicked his tongue twice, pulling Belle from the bottom of the cuddle-pile she and the twins had formed. She hopped over to the men, making herself at home over their laps, presenting her stomach to not-so-subtly demand the worship she deserved. Always weak to her demands, Jesse dutifully began to scratch her stomach in that special spot that sent her tail a-wagging and her left hindleg a-jerking.

"When the demon got too big for its britches, someone called in a sort of supernatural defense force, government made up of supernaturals meant to deal with supernaturals: Blackwatch. All very hush-hush, not completely legal. They started breaking up little hideouts, flushin' Deadlock back to the main base, cuttin' off portions and hauling everyone they could off to jail while disposin' of those too far gone. Naturally, this royally pissed off the demon, and just prompted it to send off more people to get more troops. It used up too much energy, got hungry and started killing when it fed. Thing wasn't smart by any stretch.

"Now, none of us were really thralls, not under anything but the fear of it, and fear only grew when Blackwatch was around. The thing was sloppy, losing ground and losing people, and it didn't take long for Blackwatch to come knockin' at the main base. They came in with probably... I dunno, six people for the rest of us. None of us realized 'till they'd already dealt with the crew on the first floor.

"I was up on the third, right before the demon's office, put in charge of a whole group of people that were just room-temp if you catch my meaning.

"Gabriel came up to my floor, alone in a puff of smoke, two shotguns in his hands, just blastin' away. I was scared as hell, never'd seen something like him before, thought another demon had shown up and I was caught between the two of 'em. So I just returned fire, throwing off shots like my life depended on it because for all I knew, it did. Didn't land most of them because he was all ghostly incorporeal smoke for the most part, but then he materialized right in front of this kid named Annie -if I ain't mistaken- and he brought up a hand and just crushed her neck, watched how her eyes just barely glazed over 'cause there wasn't much left in her anyway. And I took the opportunity as it presented itself and fired." Jesse brought up a hand, mimicked the shape of a gun and made a little ' _pchew_ ' noise before dropping it to tap at his jaw, "Hit right in his ear. He flopped down, and I thought it was over, and then he was scrabbling on the floor and tearing at Annie's neck and his damn brain was on the ground but it crawled back to him when he pressed his mouth to her neck and-." Jesse cut himself off, coughing. "And then he vanished, and then he was in my face and I screamed and tried to shoot him again. And he took my gun away, half-eased half-pushed me down to the floor, said something into his comm, and started off for the demon, leaving me there, absolutely confused.

"And I, like the dumbass I am, floundered to my feet and followed him. He was going to shoot, but I opened up my fat mouth before he could level his shotgun with my chest, pointed him directly to the demon, warned him about some of the traps it'd set up. He didn't get why I was tellin' him, that I wanted it dead as much as - hell, more than - anybody. So Gabriel just laughed at me, told me thanks in his own way, and misted through the door.

"Prolly shoulda listened to me. The bastard set off the first trap as soon as he walked through the door, nearly got his head cut from his shoulders.

"Now, the demon was about as happy as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. It went absolutely ballistic, launched itself at Gabriel. It wasn't speaking, just garbling and screaming as it fought against him. I'm not really sure why, but I pulled the door open a bit to watch. Guess I wanted to see the demise of it, get some twisted relief when I could see it stop twitchin' for myself.

"Instead, I saw Gabriel wrestlin' with it, not really winning or losing but losing steam. The bullet I'd hit him with had taken its toll. The demon was fadin' too, but not as fast as Gabriel. And it kicked out, knocked loose something on Gabriel that spun across the ground to the door where I was. It was my gun, and I realized I could just pick it up and shoot. So I did, and it was like they knew it, too.

"They both looked at me, the demon all excited 'cause it thought I was going to help it out and shoot the vampire it was grappling with, Gabriel's eyes wide and a string of curses flyin's outta his mouth where he called himself an idiot... I'm never gonna forget how scared the demon looked when it noticed I was aiming for it.

"Gabriel just stood up after, all calm while the demon's body withered up, curled around itself and turned to ash. I was still holding the gun when the rest of his crew busted in. One of 'em tackled me. I got a scar from it, actually, where she ripped into my shoulder while holding me down..."

 

 

> _Gabriel stared down at the sight before him, one of his subordinates pressing a dirty teenager into the ground mere feet away from the disintegrating corpse of a demon. The kid howled, bucking against the soldier's hold even when it began to draw blood, cursing Gabriel, "¡Eres un pedazo de mierda!"_
> 
> _Gabriel laughed, crouching down next to the gangly, malnourished brat that wore too much leather and too many spikes, asked, "¿Como te llamas, chico?" Something was up with this kid, something that made him keep most of his good sense while under the rule of one of the worst mind-consumers Gabriel had ever seen, something that made him able to shoot **Gabriel,** that made the kid watch a scuffle between a demon and vampire and had him pick up his gun and fire instead of crawling up into a ball like the few other survivors Blackwatch had found, that actually made him hit home even while he was shaking. Gabriel was sure some of his subordinates didn't even have such fantastic aim to land a bullet in a demon's head._
> 
> _The man reached out, examined a patch on the boy's jacket that indicated a higher rank in the gang. Most of the others Gabriel had seen were practically robots for all they could recall, everything but programmed to fulfill the demon's wishes. But not this one. Maybe the vampire could squeeze some answers out of the boy about this whole mess._
> 
> _"¡Se ayudé!¡Se ayudé, su hijo de puta!" The boy spat, accusing Gabriel of betrayal, wriggling as best as he could beneath Private Elisa. He wasn't going anywhere._
> 
> _Though none of his strike team were vampires like himself, Gabriel's crew was stronger than the brat, well-fed, well-rested, cared for in the way soldiers constantly sent on suicide missions were.  The most the little shit was going to do was bruise himself. Eliza pressed his face into the floor, slurring his speech slightly against the concrete._
> 
> _"Tranquilo, chico. No vamos duarte... más." Gabriel straightened up, picking up the revolver that had been thrown from the boy's reach. He stifled a laugh at the growl it pulled from the boy, turning his back to examine the weapon as he ordered Elisa, "Cuff him."_
> 
> _Elisa took a moment to find her cuffs - they weren't exactly standard-issue in this branch - and locked them none too gently around the boy's wrists. He practically hissed, "Let go of me! I wasn't going to hurt him, let me go dammit!"_
> 
> _"Shut the hell up!" Elisa snapped, hauling him to his feet._
> 
> _Gabriel held back a grin, "Simmons, get the team ready for extraction. You five are done here."_
> 
> _Elisa raised a brow, gesturing to the boy that continued to growl in her grip, "What about the kid?" She asked, scowling as he struggled against her._
> 
> _Gabriel blinked and cracked his knuckles. "Little shit shot me. I think we need a little time to talk."_
> 
> _"We'll send you the extraction time. You want us to call the local authorities to clean up this mess?" Simmons, a somewhat shorter fellow, asked, rubbing the butt of his gun with his glove to wipe away some blood._
> 
> _"I'll handle it. Now get out."_
> 
> _"Yes, sir." Simmons led the way out, and Elisa roughly released the boy, keeping herself facing him until she was out the door. It slammed shut with a hollow bang._
> 
> _The boy's shoulders slumped, and he wriggled his wrists, feeling the handcuffs dig into his skin. "Ya gonna bust me up now? Make yerself feel like a big, tough guy? Ya really need to do that to feel all high 'nd mighty when you're already head honcho?"_
> 
> _"You have quite the mouth on you," Gabriel muttered, stepping over what remained of the demon's corpse to stand in front of its chair. He stared at it a moment, wiped some weird goop off the seat, and sat himself down, reclining quite comfortably in the worn leather. He kicked his feet up onto the desk, "Now, I seem to remember asking you a question. What's your name, kid?"_
> 
> _The boy glared at him a moment longer, fingers curling into the cuffs on his wrists. He wasn't exactly accustomed to wearing them; though, he'd been in his fair share in the early days of Deadlock, before the demon. When it felt like people cared. But maybe it was just easier to get people outta jail than find new blood. He sighed, "McCree."_
> 
> _"First name?"_
> 
> _"Does it matter? Way you were talkin', don't seem like I'll be using it much longer."_
> 
> _"Answer the question."_
> 
> _"Jesse," the boy grunted like it was killing him, stepping forward to right a chair that had fallen during Gabe's tussle with the demon, sitting on it with his chest against the backrest. "And who the hell're you?"_
> 
> _"Gabriel Reyes, Blackwatch Commander. You're in some deep shit, Jesse."_
> 
> _"Spare me the lecture. What d'ya want? Y'ain't killed me yet, but y'don't seem like a real patient sort of fella either."_
> 
> _"I want to ask a few questions about this whole situation, about your demon and why you betrayed it."_
> 
> _Jesse scoffed, rolling his eyes before pressing further into his chair, "Psh, alright, fine. Can't promise anything, but go on 'nd shoot."_
> 
> _"Why is that?"_
> 
> _"Thing-" Jesse kicked at the ashes "-are memories. Everything went fuzzy after it showed up. Not so much for me, but plenty enough for all my compadres out there. You saw how much was left of them after the demon had its way with 'em."_
> 
> _Gabriel had seen, first hand, but that didn't clear up a damn thing. "What makes you any different?"_
> 
> _Jesse shrugged, "Guess you vampires ain't real sensitive to magic, huh?"_
> 
> _"Depends."_
> 
> _Jesse hummed, stretching his legs out in front of himself, "Now I ain't about to say this like I'm proud of it or nothin', but I was its favorite. And I reckon that's on account of my being cursed."_
> 
> _"Cursed," Gabriel echoed, thoroughly intrigued. Now that he was paying attention, he did recognize the acrid air that seem to twist around the boy, the thick and suffocating aura that came with dark magics. It was slight, no doubt intentionally masked, but present still. "You've got a masking spell at work. Not of the demon, then."_
> 
> _Jesse shrugged again, bringing his hands around and spinning the cuffs around a finger while the opposite hand tucked the lockpick back into the slit of his belt where it belonged, He tossed the cuffs to the desk between them and fiddled with a ring of twine around his finger, "Nah, that was me. Just a charm, really, but I guess it's all the same."_
> 
> _Gabriel couldn't find it in himself to even pretend to be angry. He sat up, resting his clasped hands on the desk after retrieving Elisa's cuffs. "You hungry, kid?"_
> 
> _"Guess I could eat. Why?"_
> 
> _"There was a diner a ways down the road. I don't have the best memory on an empty stomach. Do you?"_
> 
> _"Nah, don't s'pose I do... y'know, they have the **best** chocolate milkshakes?"_
> 
> _"Do they?"_
> 
> _"Yeah."_
> 
> _"Well, c'mon then. ETA's thirty minutes." Gabriel led the way out of the warehouse, politely keeping his mouth shut when Jesse lingered a moment to spit on the demon's corpse and collect his meager belongings._
> 
> _He did let Jesse throw the lighter that sent the place up in flames, though. That seemed to cheer him up a bit._

"And that seems to be about all there is to it," Jesse murmured, rubbing circles against Belle's jaw as the wolf grumbled, content.

Hanzo wordlessly reached over to curl his arms around Jesse's shoulders, rolling the wolf off their laps to land in the dirt with a confused _borf_. He pressed his face into Jesse's neck, fingers curling into the fabric of his shirt to hold him close.

Jesse smiled, returning the gesture and murmuring into Hanzo's hair, "Love you, too."

 

* * *

 

"Does it hurt?" Jesse asked suddenly, too quickly for Hanzo to comprehend focused as he was smoothing a small amount of oil along the length of his bow.

"Hmm?" Hanzo looked up from his task, wiping his slippery fingers on a spare rag before closing the container and pointing to the string that sat by Jesse in the shade, narrowly catching Jesse's eyes lingering where his pack lazed in the shade of a tree, gnawing upon the bones of what was once a sickly fawn.

Jesse handed the string over, returning his gaze to Peacekeeper where she lay in his lap, rubbing a cloth against her barrel to buff out an unseen spot of dirt. "Changing. Going canine. Does it hurt?"

He twisted the string between his fingers for a moment, quiet as he measured the length necessary to restring Stormbow, remembered the deep ache in his bones from constantly shifting between forms. He opened his mouth and lied, "Once, when I was young. Every time it was agony. I am unsure if I have grown numb or accustomed to it. I am unsure which is worse."

"Oh, that's... that's good."

Hanzo raised a brow, confused, "Good?"

"That is doesn't hurt you anymore, at least." Jesse shrugged, spinning Peacekeeper in his hand before resting her back in her holster. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "Just don't like the thought of you hurting yourself every time you wanna run with your wolves or switch back to livin' on two legs."

Smiling gently, Hanzo rubbed a bit of wax into his bow string and stood, grabbing both his quiver and Jesse's hand, "Come."

"Hey, hold up now!" Jesse snatched his hat from the stone he'd been sitting on, plopping it on his head before matching Hanzo's hurried pace. "Where're you taking me?"

"Someplace where you won't think so hard."

"Wha-? Now I was just-!"

"Being far too sweet for your own good," he finished for the other man, "You do know of my sweet-tooth, do you not?"

"Sweetheart, I don't think there's a soul on this mountain that doesn't know of your boundless appetite for all things saccharine. Think I'd die a happy man if you'd devour me, though."

Hanzo sputtered, turning away from Jesse nowhere near fast enough to hide the flush on his cheeks. It only worsened with Jesse's hearty laughter. Growling, Hanzo promptly pivoted on his heel, pressing a kiss to Jesse's cheek and murmuring, " _Later_ ," to shut him up.

"Sir, yes sir," Jesse chuckled, following Hanzo until the elder stopped in a clearing he didn't recognize. Not that he'd really explored the forest much after winter passed; there'd been no need. He only needed to follow the paths he'd worn from his cabin to Hanzo's cave, the river, and the main road. There was no need to wander and get himself lost in the brush, not now when everyone in town knew him, when he didn't need to hide from them.

It wasn't a wide clearing, but it was long, intentionally so as if someone had fell the trees into an oblong shape. Where the two stood, it was shaded, would be for the majority of the day, but the other end of the area stood fully in the sun, nary a shadow cast over it.

"Wait just a moment," Hanzo spoke, pressing his hand against Jesse's chest to make him stay before disappearing into the woods at the opposite side of the clearing.

Jesse huffed, looking over his shoulder to see someone'd followed them into the clearing. "Hey, Billy. What're you up to?"

The elderly wolf growled at Jesse's question, convincing the man to refrain from offering to scratch the mangy thing in that one spot on his back that just sent his rear leg wild, and wobbled to a thick patch of grass in the shade before plopping down.

"Stubborn old man," Jesse grumbled.

"What did you call me?" Hanzo asked playfully, hauling _something_  into the sunny area and affixing it to a sturdy but bare sapling. He adjusted the rope around the straw amalgamation, carefully pressing what looked like some sort of goggles back into place in its head and straightening out its overalls.

"I was talking to Mr. Kid over here." Jesse threw his thumb behind himself, pointing out the wolf where he lay, legs kicked up in the air where he'd fallen asleep in a pretzel-eque shape.

"Of course you were," Hanzo joked drily, making his way back to Jesse's side.

"Now, take no offense to this, but what the hell is that thing you just tied up to that tree?"

"My target?"

"Don't tell me you made that thing."

"Oh, please. It washed up on the beach three summers ago, and my friend beseeched me to rid her of its hideous appearance on her property. It's shaped enough like a human to be an adequate target _, and the straw refuses to decay for whatever reason_ ," Hanzo added under his breath, taking his bow from where it rested on his back and testing the draw.

"Uh-huh... Creepy as hell, whatever it is," Jesse muttered, squinting at the thing from where he stood behind and to the left of the archer. (Best not to be _directly_ behind anyone firing a weapon in his experience,)

"Absolutely. Reeks of explosions and rust," Hanzo mused, nocking an arrow and drawing back the string of his bow.

"Certainly looks like it just made its way out of a fire."

Hanzo laughed and released the arrow. It flew true, impaling the target through the chest. Pleased with his weapon, Hanzo handed it over to Jesse and ushered the taller man into the space he just occupied.

"The draw may be a bit more than you are accustomed, but you will adjust to it. Spread your legs a bit more, stand straight, take a deep breath and-."

Jesse loosed the arrow before Hanzo could finish, sending it spiraling through the air to lodge deep in the target's stomach and scratch against the sapling supporting it.

"You have done this before, then?" Hanzo, amused, teased, retreating to Billy's side to watch while petting the wolf.

Jesse was silent, testing the bow with another shot that went wide to understand its particular nature before nocking a third arrow and speaking with the string drawn to his cheek, "Mama McCree knew a thing or two about this. Best archer I've ever seen. Absolutely terrifying on horseback, I tell you what." His fingertips slid free of the string, and the arrow flew into the target's neck with enough force to shake it and the sapling.

"I have never had the opportunity to shoot from horseback. She must have been a fantastic marksman."

"Oh, phenomenal. Mounted archery's a whole different beast, having to account for the horse below you, worrying about leading the damn thing in the right direction and shooting straight. I'd prefer my six-shooter, but in a pinch I know my way around a bow." Jesse flinched when his next arrow landed next to Hanzo's where a heart would be in a living being. He swore he heard a whine, but it must have been the bowstring.

Hanzo rolled his eyes, "I never thought I would see the day. You? Humble?"

"Yeah, yeah, yuck it up. I'm just saying that 'cuz I'm standing here with Robin Hood behind me."

"Oh, believe me, he cannot hold a candle to my skill." Hanzo stood with a groan, clicking his tongue to encourage Billy to follow suit. "I'll get supper started. I trust you to collect the arrows."

"You do that. Maybe next time you can have a go at it with Peacekeeper?"

"I look forward to it." Hanzo pressed forward to kiss Jesse quickly before walking off with Billy back toward their home, leaving Jesse to gather the arrows and put that target wherever it was supposed to be.

Jesse picked his way over the clearing to the thing's side, whistling as he set about easing the arrows out of the burlap.

He stopped abruptly when the _thing_ released a noise like an age-old crypt door easing open for the thick, acrid stench of death and decay to flood out. Pausing, Jesse gave the thing a thorough look-over, but he was unable to see anything damning the thing to any supernatural origin. He steeled himself and peered into its thick goggles.

He wasn't sure if he imagined that sentient orange flicker where an eye would be, but he wasn't sticking around long enough to find out. He wrenched the last arrow out of the thing's stomach and hauled ass out of the clearing, pretending that impish laughter taunting him as he ran was just the wind whistling past his ears.

**Author's Note:**

> Yo! I'm not dead! I did write this while SUPER INCREDIBLY UNDENIABLY sick and hopped tf up on Day/NyQuil tho.  
> Had an itch to write, so I scratched it by pumping out some McHanzo. It's shit, but it's the first proper-length thing I've written since The Incident^TM so whatever. Hope this answers any questions lingering from the first bit (I don't reply to comments because I'm an anxious bean, but I see you and love you <3)!  
> Anywhoozers, Imma work on finishing the second part of this particular story within the month (shitty timeline, but I am real busy and don't know when the next time I'll be at my desktop is ;-;). Later, xoxo!


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